Page 182 - The Golden Age of Chinese Archaeology: Celebrated Discoveries from the People’s Republic of China

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a. Jade crane imaginary beasts; the plaques frequently include
perforations for suspension or attachment. The
3
Length 12 (4 / 4)
most appealing objects, however, are carved in the
Late Shang Yinxu Period II (c. 1200 BCE)
round, as are this dove and tortoise. The dove 3
From Xiaotun Locus North, at Yinxu, Anyang,
Henan Province is a smoothed nugget of turquoise that irresistibly
4
invites holding in the hand. The tortoise shows
The Institute of Archaeology, CASS, Beijing the ability of jade artisans to utilize features of the
natural stone. In this instance, a dark layer within
b. Turquoise dove the stone forms the tortoise's carapace, while the
body and limbs are rendered from lighter material.
Length 6.4 (2 Vz) This technique is rarely if ever found prior to the
Late Shang Yinxu Period II (c. 1200 BCE)
Late Shang. RT
From Xiaotun Locus North, at Yinxu, Anyang,
Henan Province
1 Zhongguo 1980,114 -195. See also Chen 1986, 210 - 219 and
Zheng 1989, 315-325.
The Institute of Archaeology, CASS, Beijing 2 Excavated in 1976 (M 5:516); reported: Zhongguo 1980,163.
3 Excavated in 1976 (M 5:416); reported: Zhongguo 1980,
c. Hardstone tortoise 204.
4 Excavated in 1975 (75 AST Fn:i8); reported: Zhongguo
Length 5.8 (2 V<) Anyang 1976, 272. The tortoise was recovered from a
foundation (Foundation n) not far from Tomb 5. This
Late Shang Yinxu Period (c. 1200-1050 BCE) subterranean house may have served as a jade workshop
From Xiaotun Locus North, at Yinxu, Anyang, and in any case held such rarities as traces of painted
Henan Province walls, lacquer-painted pottery, and glazed ware. The ar-
chaeologists also recovered an inscribed bronze lid that
they date to Yinxu Period IV.
The Institute of Archaeology, CASS, Beijing

The Fu Hao tomb has yielded an abundance of
hardstone carvings; more than 750 examples are
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enumerated in the formal excavation report. Many
of these objects are ritual types (zong, bi, gui) —
forms attested as early as the Neolithic period —
and the tomb included a good number of weapons
and other shapes thought to be ceremonial. One
ge dagger-axe bears an incised text understood to
indicate that the blade was one of five presented
by a statelet called Lu. It may be that important
personages such as Fu Hao were presented with
raw stone or carved products as gifts from subordi-
nate groups. Many of the hardstones have been
tested in recent years and prove to be minerals
subsumed under the rubric nephrite. At least some
are thought to come from the region of Khotan in
Central Asia (modern Xinjiang), a legendary source
of jade throughout Chinese history.
Over half of the carvings (426 items) are deco-
rative objects. Many are flat plaques shaped as real
2
animals (such as this long-necked crane ) or as

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